A Dark Craft
by 8cheshirekat
Summary: Gaara/OC, Neji/Hinata-implied "Nobody told me or showed me the difference between love and pain. They always showed me love is cruel, that love always hurts."
1. Prologue: Anbu?

(Gaara/OC, Neji/Hinata) When Sasuke and the Akatsuki come after Naruto, a strange woman appears and saves him. But she leaves behind a clue as to who she is. Naruto meets up with an old friend to discover her identity. But not all secrets should be discovered.

---Leaf Village outskirts---

His blue eyes fixed on the gate and he made a mad dash for the gates. He was almost home!

But almost didn't cut it.

A roped net sprang up around him. Naruto yelled in surprise. Behind him, Kakashi, Sakura, and Hinata made a dash to help him, but simply didn't reach in time. A blur of white streaked right towards him and Naruto shielded his face. The blur stabbed Naruto right in the arm. Naruto looked up, through the tears and pain and saw Sasuke's red Sharingan looking back at him. Naruto tried not to say anything, but it was difficult. When he finally decided to say something, Sasuke smirked.

"It's been far too long, Naruto. Far too long. Finally, I can kill you like I'd always planned. Now, it's your turn, Naruto."

"NO!" Sakura screamed. A paper seal was stuck to her forehead. Kakashi and Hinata were pinned down as well, by the same seals. "Sasuke-kun! Stop! Please, I'm begging you!"

"Pathetic woman!" Sasuke brought his hand up and then down. A kunai stabbed into Sakura's hands. "I wish to achieve something. Perhaps, later, you can be of use to me. For now, be silent and still and wait your turn! You'll die as well!"

He turned back to Naruto. His blade pointed right at Naruto's nose. With a flick, he sliced off Naruto's head protector. Another slash and Naruto was cut free and bleeding from his upper torso. It was like a disaster waiting to happen with how much blood poured out.

Naruto coughed and tried to get up. "What's wrong with you, Sasuke?! You were my friend once. Why aren't you now?"

"I'm not friends with weaklings. Besides, you talk of sharing pain and being friends! I have to get power before I can be anything! I'm not like you!"

"No, but you're barking mad, Uchia Sasuke."

All eyes turned to a maroon-and-lavender-clad figure. She had long, beautiful, dark hair that was tied up in a bun that spiked out where it met her head. She wore a frowning wolf mask with smiling eyes. A three-pronged claw of red came up her left side and covered her right eye, mouth, and nose. She was a Suna Anbu.

"Who are _you_?!" Sasuke demanded, pointing his sword at her, like a proud man.

"You can call me Yakushi. I'm not sure if you're the good guy or the bad guy in this fight. But I'm certain that you're killing won't help."

"How do you know my name?"

The Anbu didn't move. "Ha. Itachi sure has a way with descriptions." She put her hands together, as if praying. "He described you quite well!" The trees moved and began to block Sasuke from Naruto and the other ninja. "On the up-and-up, you're much different than your brother. I can see the difference, both good and bad." She formed the symbols as she spoke the chant. "Bird. Tiger. Ox. Tiger. Ox. Bird. Rabbit. Bird. Ninja Art! Tree Stomper!"

The trees moved, as if to squash Sasuke, but he ran before they could and she released her jutsu, sending the trees back to their original places. She looked at the four ninja's lying there and just gave a "humph" before kneeling down.

Reaching out, she plucked Kakashi's off. "Ah, the resemblance to White Fang is quite astonishing. You must be related." She dusted off the twigs and leaves before moving on to Sakura. She crossed her arms. "Hm. Your temper and your reputation make you just like Tsunade. You must be Haruno Sakura." She pulled the paper off. Grabbing Sakura's arms when the girl tried to move, she slowly, methodically, removed the kunai. "I recognize your eyes, Hyuga. You're from the main branch, so, you're Hyuga Hinata. Ah, yes, you're all quite popular. Even in Suna." With a quick bow, she vanished in a flurry of leaves and flower petals.

A whisper flew out, over their heads. "Yakushi, that's my name," the Anbu said, through the wind.

"Who.... who was that?" Naruto asked before his body went limp. He was out cold.


	2. Chapter 1: Attempt

---Sand Village---

It had been almost five weeks since Yakushi had left. She was currently training some new Anbu recruits. It was hard for Gaara to keep to his office, but he had a feeling of being trapped and unable to escape.

Gaara watched, from his window, as the Anbu recruits tried to circle behind Yakushi. The professional Anbu just moved around them with ease, running circles around them. She didn't bother stopping them. She just waited for them to figure out that she was moving so her back was never open. One of them did and waited.

His heart pounded. The Anbu always practiced with real weapons. The trainee jumped, but missed. Yakushi tilted to the left. That tilt made the Trainee slam into the tower that was part of Gaara's office area. He just watched as Yakushi gave a little gesture and the other trainees stepped back. Yakushi knelt down and helped the youngster back to his feet. When he looked at her she just turned to the rest of the class and gestured to him.

"In combat, having comrades makes any mission easier. If you see a comrade down, don't be ashamed to hang back and assist." Yakushi sighed and told them to go home, with some special homework for each student. When they'd cleared off, she slumped against the tower opposite Gaara. She tilted her head back, almost as if she were looking right at Gaara.

Gaara silently turned away from the window. Maybe he was just being paranoid, but why did he even bother watching Yakushi? She was just like the other Anbu of the Sunagakure. Why should one person be special? Gaara didn't understand and decided it was over his head.

There was a knock from both sides of Gaara. The window tinkled and the door creaked slightly. Gaara looked over his shoulder to see Yakushi. Ignoring her, he opened his door to see Kankuro's puppet standing there. A feeling of dread filled Gaara for a second, before he gritted his teeth. "Yes?"

"Gaara, wanna go meet the new recruits for Anbu position?"

"Sure." Gaara walked back to his desk and was staking his papers when a soft scratching made him look up. Yakushi was writing on the window with the tip of her kunai. Slowly, she nodded to him, before she vanished. Gaara shook his head. Yakushi always made him laugh.

When he came out, Kankuro read back the message she'd left. "We're all stupid. Todays just my day to be stupid." Kankuro looked at Gaara, who had a small smile on. "You're in love!"

Gaara almost fell mid-step. "I am not! Yakushi is.... she's just a good friend." Gaara felt his heart pounding a pinball game around his ribs. Gaara just ignored it, since he felt that no one person deserved more attention for the leader of the village. "Let's go."

Kankuro was laughing behind Gaara as they walked down the halls. Karasu was stuffed back into his scroll, which was slung over Kankuro's back. He quietly kept laughing when they'd gotten otuside. Gaara was glad he'd toned it down. Yakushi, who was called Wolfe, and three other Anbu, Star and Noose, stood with their hands snapped to their sides and their hands up in salute before they were folded behind their bodies. Wolfe looked a bit beaten, meaning some kind of scuffle had happened.

Star stepped forward as the new recruits came forward, clumsily lining up. Star cleared his throat as they began to bicker about who was put in front. When they were settled once more, Star introduced Gaara. He just coughed when they ignored him. Stomping his foot, Star got their attention. "Now, we're proud to present the fifty who've made it through the harsh training, sir. If you'd like a demonstration, Wolfe can show you."

Gaara gave a quick nod. No sense wasting a trip if he found them unworthy. He peeked to the side and just as he was about to look away, a bird came into view. It was a messenger, and it wasn't an urgent call. Gaara caught the bird in a little sand cage. Bringing it down to him, he held out his arm.

Some of the Anbu students were awe-struck by how gentle Gaara was with the creature. Wolfe was suddenly alert. Noose, who was a slender man compared to Wolfe, cocked his head to the side and then looked back. Star just stood there. Gaara was just unfurling the message, when Wolfe collected him up and Noose and Star scared the students into running.

A paper bomb that had transfered from the bird to Gaara's sand blew a nice hole in the ground.


	3. Chapter 2: Fighting

---Leaf Village---

It was the day of the Sunagakure Anbu's arrival. Jiraya, Kakashi, and Shikamaru were supposed to come and meet the Anbu. It was just about that time that Shikamaru heard from the Anbu that there was a scuffle going down several yards out, where they'd suspected Akatsuki movement for a long time.

Just as Shikamaru finished telling Jiraya and Kakashi to be aware of Akatsuki, there was a huge explosion. After a few seconds, it started drizzling slightly. Despite there being no clouds in the sky, the drizzle went on for ten seconds before it faded and then just stopped. Shikamaru scratched the back of his head. "Ugh! Why's it always gotta be a nice day?"

The three men took off for the source of the explosion.

"Nara Shikamaru reporting! We have a commotion outside the Village. Take command of the Gates! I'm with the Sage and Hatake. Keep your men around the gate and keep your eyes peeled. Update me if something happens."

Shikamaru had to stop because a kunai narrowly missed his neck. Looking back and then looking at the source.

Four Anbu were fighting off five Akatsuki members. Two of the four were badly wounded, one of them was perfectly fine, not a scratch, and the last was a bit battered. The one who was fine was performing a long chain of hand symbols. When they were complete, the Anbu slammed their hands down, blood trickling out like a river from one hand to the other.

"Ninja Art! Elements of Spirit!"

The four Anbu's chakra levels exploded to well beyond Shukaku's. Not quite the level of two-tails, but still visible. The one who'd cast it had a dark gray chakra. The two that were badly wounded had bright yellow chakra, and the last Anbu had sterling green chakra.

The dark gray chakra formed a wolf. The sterling green chakra formed a cluster of stars that revolved around the Anbu. The two bright yellow chakras took on the forms of butterflies. The four Anbu converged on the Akatsuki. Kisame swung his blade and only managed to cut away one of the green stars around the Anbu he fought. Tobi and Deiadera actually sent one of the yellow butterflies flying back. Itachi jumped the second butterfly and used a clone to come down and stab the Anbu from behind. Sasori's hands flew out and he used one of his puppets to attack the wolf, but failed miserably as the Anbu made contact with his body.

"Wolfe! Monarch and Blue need your assistance!"

"Star, I'm a little busy!"

"Well, hurry up!" Star was shooting green flares at Kisame. He quickly had to change direction when Deiadera sent an explosive at him.

Before the explosive went off, however, the giant gray chakra wolf shot out and swallowed the bomb. When it exploded, the gray-haired Anbu was actually pushed back, towards Shikamaru, Jiraya, and Kakashi. It was a woman and she looked at the three men before twisting away from Itachi's attempt to get her. When he changed course to attack the Leaf shinobi, she grabbed his wrist and yanked hard.

"You, you must be the Leaf we're supposed to meet. Could you, possibly, help Monarch and Blue? They're in a bit of a spot and we're a bit under-handed right now." Wolfe didn't say much else, but she whipped around and threw her hand out. Her dark gray charkra formed up around her in one swift movement and followed the direction of her hand. The wolf came down hard on Sasori once more and actually tore the human puppet apart. She then turned her attention to Itachi, who was on the verge of attack. She managed to stop one of his hands and performed three, one-handed, hand gestures. "Sorry, this is going to hurt. Ninja Art: Transformation of Spirit!"

The two butterflies became large-winged eagles. The stars became galaxies revolving around Storm. The wolf grew three new tails and a rather nasty row of teeth. The four of them keept their distance and then all attacked, except Wolfe. She held her hands tight together. Her pinkies were pointed to the heavens and the rest of her hands looked like prayer. When Star was attacking, she put one pinkie down and raised a thumb. For one of the two eagles, she'd put down a pinkie and raise an index finger.

Jiraya decided to join the fight and performed a fire ball jutsu. It distracted the Akatsuki long enough for Tobi and Deiadera to go down because of Star. Wolfe got up from her kneeling position, releasing her hands. Their chakra vanished. Wolfe and Star automatically turned to Jiraya and saluted him. Itachi quickly pulled them all back. He could clearly see the threat at hand and was determined to pull them back safely.

Wolfe quietly dusted off her shins before helping the one called Monarch to his feet. Blue was having trouble standing and had to lean on Star. She had the darkest blue hair and Monarch had the brightest orange hair that the men had ever seen. Wolfe quickly handed over a scroll before going to a tree. Whispering to someone behind the tree, she assisted someone getting up from their hiding place. Gaara emerged, using Wolfe as a crutch. He had a dangerously black wound that looked like it was infected.

"Is there any way you can get medical attention for Kazekage-sama?" Wolfe asked, her voice quite gentle now. She sounded like a real woman. "We were ambushed earlier and he was badly wounded trying to protect us."

"Why did Gaara come in the first place?" Naruto asked.

"I haven't the foggiest. But he came anyway." Star was walking with Blue. "I'm sure you can tell by now, but we have some trainee students with us. Look, can we save Kazekage Gaara-sama's leg or not? If you can't, then Wolfe is going to have to do it."

Wolfe put Gaara's arm across her shoulders. Placing one hand on his sore ribs and the other on his shoulder, she let him do a sort of hop and walk combination. "I don't have a perfected art in healing. I was hoping someone here could do that."

Gaara just stared at Kakashi. "Is Tsunade available? Maybe she can help. I know she's good."

Wolfe looked shocked. "As in the Sanin Tsunade? I thought she was in the Land of Wind? Why would she be in the Land of Fire, Kazekage-sama?"

Gaara just smiled, a look that was odd on him. "She's the Hokage of the Leaf Village, Wolfe."

Jiraya threw his head back and laughed. "Not everybody knows that, especially visiting Ninja."

Wolfe quickly excused herself and continued to help Gaara walk. Star shook his head and then said something that seemed to upset Wolfe.

"You're not as quick as that Uchiha. What's wrong with you? Itachi seems to be quicker at the draw than you."

Wolfe, forgetting she was holding Gaara, whipped around. She dropped Gaara and slammed a fist into Star's stomach. While he was coming down, she twisted slightly and her elbow got him in the jaw, cracking the bottom of his mask. While he was still reeling from that, she swept low and tripped him up. Before he hit the ground, she pierced his left arm with several kunais. When he was down, she drew her sword and put it to his neck in a smooth motion.

"What did you say? Are you comparing me to Itachi again? I thought I told you, he and I are two totally different people. I'm a woman and he's a man. I'm not going to tolerate this any longer! I hate people who compare me to that man! He and I are equals! You saw that just now."

Gaara, who was sitting where she'd dropped him scratched his cheek. "Um, don't compare her to Itachi. She thinks Itachi's stronger and shouldn't be compared to a woman," Gaara informed the trio of men. "She tends to get irritable and beats up whoever says that." Gaara waved his arm. "Oi! Yakushi! Wolfe! Stop! No harm done. I think he was trying to make a point is all."

Wolfe brought her sword up and stabbed it down just hard enough to crack Star's mask right down the middle. "Point take, Star. Anything else to say?"

"Ow?" Star said, motioning to his wounded arm. "Look, let's just get the Kazekage some proper help, then you can beat me up, deal?"

"Fine." Wolfe stored her sword and looked at the trio. "Where can I find the Hokage Tsunade-sama?"


	4. Chapter 3: LookALike

Wolfe was standing beside Gaara's bedside. She kept her head up and her arms crossed. Her maroon and lavender uniform was slightly dirty from her scuffle a few hours earlier with Star. She'd beaten him well enough that the medic ninjas needed to work on him. Now, she was awaiting the Hokage at Gaara's bedside.

When the door opened, Naruto, Choji, and Inoichi walked in. Not recognizing two of them, Wolfe put a hand down, where she hid several weapons. Gaara gently touched her elbow. She didn't relax, but Naruto didn't stop himself from yelling at her.

"You did this to Gaara, didn't you?! After that thing you did to me! Why are you here?! What do you want, you Anbu-wannabe!"

Wolfe grabbed her mask and yanked it off. Her bright violet eyes stood out well enough. "I'm here under the Kazekage's orders! I was returning home when I found you! I'm sorry if I was in a hurry!"

Naruto looked more shocked than anything else. "You look just like...."

Wolfe, well, without the mask she was Yakushi, gritted her teeth. Looking away, she pulled back from Gaara. "Just say it. I look like that traitor, don't I? The one you all hate because of where you think his loyalties lie. SAY IT!"

"You look like Yakushi Kabuto."

Gaara didn't say anything. He just kept his head down and waited for them to stop arguing. Inoichi, unlike Choji and Gaara, stepped up to express his feelings about this.

"If you look like Yakushi, but you're from the Sand, where did you originate from?"

She took a deep breath. "It's a long story. My family was murdered. In that murder-ravaged land, my brother and I survived. To keep me alive, he sent me away to see the world. I lived in many villages, learning from many mentors the different styles of jutsu. I finally settled in Sunagakure because the people there were just as strong and just as will-powered as I was. That would be my life in a nutshell." Looking at Inoichi, she gave the feeling of being alone. "Besides, my brother never came to find me. The way you speak of him, I know he's alive now. Gives me a reason to get better so I can kill him."

"You sound just like Sasuke." Naruto said it without even thinking.

"Are you saying I'm as low as that low-life? My brother wanted me to get strong so I'd kill him. He wants to die, after how much death he's already seen. You don't know, you won't know, without a sibling. Sometimes, it's best to just forget it."

"Hoshiko!"

"What?! It's true."

"Hoshiko, leave. I think it's time you left the room." Gaara gently touched her elbow again. "Just leave. Please. Enough has happened. We can't let that secret escape you. Not yet."

"Kazekage-sama! I have to say something! I'm not that--!"

"Shut up!" Gaara said, yelling over her.

A dead silence followed that and Hoshiko just stared at Gaara before she bowed low to him. Gaara didn't look at her, he just stared at his hands. When she left, he closed his eyes and breathed out a long sigh. Looking at the three by the door, Gaara didn't say another word.

Naruto knew that look. He wore it well when he felt like he'd hurt someone special. It was more painful than dying, to yell at a special person. Naruto walked up to Gaara and touched his shoulder. "How're you feeling?"

Inoichi was looking around to see where Hoshiko had escaped to. He thought he could get some answer from Hoshiko about something that was bothering him slightly. Naruto and Choji didn't see.

Inoichi finally decided to head outside, leaving the kids to talk kid talk. Outside, he stopped and turned around. He thought that maybe, just maybe, Hoshiko would be there. Sadly, he was mistaken.

Turning to leave, Inoichi noticed a girl with gray hair looking timidly at the hospital. Her violently violet colored eyes stood out in the shade. It was Hoshiko, only she was wearing street cloths. A pair of regular pants that were torn on the left knee, a gray shirt with one long sleeve and one elbow-length sleeve. Her shoes were regular ninja sandals. Around her neck was the Sand Shinobi's head protector. She saw Inoichi and quickly turned to leave.

Quicker than an "old man" would move, Inoichi grabbed Hoshiko's arm. Wheeling the girl around, he wanted to talk to her. "What do you mean by you have to say something?"

Hoshiko looked surprised that someone cared. "Well, you see, I've always learned that if I keep my mouth shut, someone's going to start a rumor about me that's not true and I'll end up regretting it." She looked embarrassed. "Could you, um, let go of my arm?"

Inoichi slowly let go. "You're a mystery, Yakushi Hoshiko."

"Yes, and I'm a person who's never very special."


	5. Chapter 4: Wishes

It was almost dark when Gaara was finally alone. He curled up, under the covers and watched the moon. It felt so odd to be in a place that was built out of stone and metal. He had become used to the sand and dirt that made up the towers of Sunagakure. He was kind of scared, but he was safe.

Gaara sat up. Sleep wasn't going to over-take him. Something must be bothering him, that had to be it. Gaara could only think of what he'd said to Hoshiko. She was so devoted to him, and she was still human. Gaara looked down, at his hand, and saw the sand still moving around him. It made him remember the day he'd first me Hoshiko and how he still regretted it....

---_flashback_---

Gaara was twelve. He had three more weeks until he'd leave for the Chunnin Exams. It was a very cloudy day and it was threatening to rain. Gaara was actually still standing outside, waiting for someone to come and get him. Gaara hated it when they ignored him, and they knew that. Gaara was a very high-maintenance kid, and he wasn't eagerly awaiting the chance to wait.

Just as he was about to leave, Gaara heard someone walking towards him. It was a girl and she was dressed like a ninja in taining. The head protector was missing and she wore a pair of black pants, a tan shirt, a pair of black sandals, and a pair of dark blue gloves. Her hair was being moved around like a wild animal by the wind that was sweeping through when it felt like it. She spotted Gaara and ran over to talk to him.

"Hey! Um, I'm lost and I was wondering if you could direct me to the Kazekage's building? I'm kind of, um, new here." She gave a weak laugh.

"Why ask me? I wouldn't know."

"Oh, you wouldn't?" She suddenly look flustered. "Oh, man. Um, do you know someone who could help me?"

"No." Gaara's anger was starting to boil over. This girl was annoying. "Go away."

"Ah?" The girl looked shocked. "Um, okay, but, um, before I go, my name is Hoshiko."

"Go away."

"Um." Hoshiko sighed and held out her hand. "It was nice to meet you, stranger."

Gaara's rage spilled out and he attacked the poor girl. His sand made huge claws and he didn't give her time to run. Hoshiko didn't run, though, she stood there, unmoved by the sand and still held her hand out. The smile she'd worn earlier, however, died and she watched the sand. After it was close enough to kill her, she ducked and covered her head.

The sand came down and slashed at her arms, her legs, her back. When she was in so much pain she couldn't stay there, she got up and tried to run. The claws ripped at her stomach and her chest as she ran. She screamed and screamed, but that was all she could do as she ran. Finally, the sand crushed her left wrist, shattering all the bones in her left hand. She drew a kunai from nowhere and cut a path through the sand, pulling her hand free. The blood on her body began to pool. She collapsed on the steps nearby. Gasping for air, she looked up at Gaara. His claw had sliced part of her forehead away. It was like she'd been attacked by Anbu, very angry Anbu.

"I don't have time for stupidity. Next time I say to go away, go away. I hate people like you."

"I-I'm sorry." Hoshiko could barely get it out before her head fell to the ground and her hand holding the kunai went limp. Gaara heard people coming to see what the commotion was about. He left her there as a woman screamed and people gathered. He had more important things to do.

---_end_---

There was a knock and Gaara looked up hopefully and then away, defeated. It was only Sakura coming to check on him. He looked out the window, thinking of places that would be better than in a hospital. Sakura's hand touched his arm and he looked at her.

"Gaara, there's a visitor for you. But first, let's see that leg."

Gaara didn't fight her. He let her check on it. When she was leaving, he heard her tell the visitor to go in. Gaara didn't get his hopes up as he crawled back to his pillow and wait. He turned to see Star. No surprise. "Yes?"

"We were hoping to do some training, but we can't locate Wolfe. Do you know where she might've disappeared off to?"

Gaara's stomach pitched. Had she gone home? Or had she disappeared? What happened to her? Gaara took a deep breath. No sense worrying about her. Hoshiko could take care of herself, after all. "No. Have you looked in the forests? Or perhaps somewhere high up? She seems to like rooftops."

"We've scoured the forest. Most of the roofs we passed were filled with people preparing to watch the fireworks, sir." Star sounded a bit worried. With his mask on, however, it was hard to tell.

Gaara looked out the window. "So, even here they love fireworks." Gaara felt the pit of his stomach give way and he tried not to tear up. Wolfe was probably outside, not looking for fireworks. Gaara swallowed and closed his eyes. "Look on every high rooftop. She's always been on roofs when I look for her."

"Yessir. Thank you." Star gave a quick bow and walked back out the door.

With a small sigh, Gaara looked back at his hands. What had Temari said? Love is crazy, sexy, silly? Well, Gaara was having trouble thinking it was sexy or silly, but he could see it being crazy. Crazy because it was already driving him mad.

---Faces of the Hokage---

Hoshiko finally sat down. She had heard fireworks were going to be set off and found a high place to watch it. She didn't want to go back to Gaara, not after she'd probably made him the angriest shinobi alive. She'd done it before, and to hear him yell made her remember the day it rained and she'd lost the use of her left hand's nerves. She'd lost normal function in one eye and her body couldn't stand long fights that lasted days.

But she didn't hold it against him.

Hoshiko had learned that holding grudges only made moving forward harder. She'd also learned that you should live with your mistakes. But nobody ever let her live down her mistakes. They compared her big mistakes with Itachi's biggest mistake. She'd never live it down if Star heard about her mistake of disobeying the Kazekage, she'd hear it left and right about how she was a horrible Anbu and protector.

But right now, all Hoshiko could think of was how much she wanted to tell Gaara how amazing and strong he was. She had a crush on the leader of a village that was stronger in number than one girl. She had no title to her name, she didn't even have a house to her name. She lived on the rooftops of Sunagakure. The only thing she had in her name was a title and a man that she'd never met that was supposed to be her betrothed husband from some great clan in Konhagakure. She didn't think she'd hold up against all of Gaara's suitors.

A loud bang resonated over the land and Hoshiko saw a shooting star. Quickly closing her eyes, she clasped her hands together in prayer and made her wish as the star shot through the fireworks beautiful orange and green and yellow and red colored flares.

'_I wish for love and happiness for Gaara. He's the most precious thing to me. Let him smile, please, let him smile._'

The star faded, and so did Hoshiko's thoughts. No wish of her's was going to be true. Still, it was nice to wish.

A soft "thump" interrupted her thoughts and she sighed. "Yes, Star?" She didn't bother turning around. She knew he was there, with all his nasty smelling cologne.

"You noticed?"

"Yes. What do you want?"

"Well, um, after I take a quick shower, can you help me train Monarch and Blue?"

Hoshiko watched an explosion of red and sighed. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. Go and get that nasty smell off. I'll go to the training grounds." When he left, Hoshiko's head dropped and she vomited, all over the First's head. She whipped her chin and looked over her shoulder. Star was nasty. "Blech, that stench sucks." Hoshiko saw another bright red flash and tried to avert her eyes. The red reminded her of good and bad things. She had to get away from the fireworks.


	6. Chapter 5: Found

Gaara's recovery was faster than anyone predicted. He was able to stand by the next morning after the fireworks. He greeted his visitors instead of surprising them. He sitll waited for Hoshiko to come and talk to him, but nobody told him she was looking for her "betrothed husband" the whole day.

She found him, in the training area.

Hoshiko watched him practice his Gentle Fist before she spoke up.

"Are you Hyuga Neji?"

He turned around and stared at her. "Why?"

"No reason." Hoshiko slowly came out from behind the shaded tree. She noticed he was still determined to fight and she raised a hand, revealing a kunai. She threw it when he wasn't expecting it. "Shall I spar with you for a while?"

"That'd be nice."

Neji took his stance, leaving his Byakugan off.

Five minutes later, Hoshiko was standing over Neiji, out of breath. She smiled brightly. "Well that turned out differently than I'd thought."

Neiji laughed, his breath coming in short. "Well, I'll admit defeat to a strong opponent."

"Oh? Who says I'm done?" She picked him up and dusted off his sleeves. "Now, I'm done." She smiled again. It was easy to see that Neji was handsome, had a good name, a good home to live in, and he was a gentleman. But Hoshiko felt no love towards this man, just admiration. She could pretend it was love, but there was no way she'd ever fall head-over-heels for him. "Have you ever heard the name Hoshiko before?" she asked, venturing a guess he'd never heard of her before.

"Yeah, why?" Neji was dusting the rest of his cloths off.

"How do you know her?"

"She's my betrothed. Why? You know her? I've never met her."

"Um, that would be me."

There was a silence as Neji stopped dusting his knees. After a few moments, he stood up and looked back at her. "Are you serious?" he looked a bit sad, saying that.

"Yeah. Sad?"

Neji looked up at the sky and watched a brown bird fly from the far end of the training grounds to the closer end. "I'm a bit sad. My heart loves someone else. I was hoping to never meet you. But I guess it can't be helped sometimes."

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I love someone special, too. He's nothing like, don't get me wrong, but he's just as kind as you." She smiled and poked her head around to look at his face.

Neji was smiling. "Perhaps we can pretend. Just be friends until we can't stand each other anymore."

"Works for me." Hoshiko stood up again. "Who is it that you love so dear?"

"Hinata. She's the heir to the Main Branch. What about you?"

"Don't laugh, but it's Gaara of the Desert."

Neji didn't laugh, he just smiled. "So, we love those with power. Sounds like we'll be interesting friends."

"Yeah."

They stood in silence, watching the brown bird circle a tree.

---Tsunade---

She was leafing through the pages of reports when one caught her eye. It was a report saying there was Akatsuki activity nearing the gates of the village. She didn't think it would be late, but the report was five weeks old. That meant they were probably right near the gates.

"SHIZUNE!"

---Gaara---

He was just learning to move around with a crutch when the doors to his room flew open and startled him. Looking around, he saw Hoshiko, out of breath and looking like a rabid animal. She ran to him and pulled him away from the window.

"What's going on?" he asked as she put him to the wall and peeked out the window.

"There's word the Akatsuki are in the village, sir. Tsunade requested you remain under protection. Neji, do you see anything?"

Neji walked in. "No. It looks like it's clear in this area. I don't see anyone suspicious."

Her hands were shaking slightly on Gaara's arm and he looked down at her. "What's wrong?! You're shaking!"

It wasn't Hoshiko who spoke. "She was startled just now by the news. So was I. The Akatsuki haven't surfaced for nearly a month, anywhere. This is surprising, even for them. On the other hand, she's never had to rush to do something like this." Neji sounded calm about all of this.

Hoshiko finally let go of Gaara's arm and Gaara felt that pitch again. It was a bit painful, but he felt he deserved it. He watched her close the curtains and retrieve his crutch from where it'd fallen. Coming back to him, she held it out. "I had to do my duty that I swore to you ages ago, Kazekage-sama. To both you and your father. It's something I can't run from, no matter what was said and what's been done."

Gaara's heart sank a bit. Maybe, the only reason she stayed by his side, was because of a stupid promise. He had kind of hoped it was because she wanted to be near him. He brushed it off and quickly got steady again.

Neji suddenly looked over his shoulder. Turning, he got into a defensive stance. Waiting patiently for the door to open. When it slid open, Neji knew right away and backed down.

"Well, that's scary," Star said, standing back slightly. "Anyways, we're not really going to stay here. We need to move the Kazekage to the mountain villas. One of them is available. C'mon, let's get going."

"Right." Hoshiko knelt down and collected Gaara's gourd, armored vest, and the few close-range weapons that Gaara carried. She let Gaara lean on her as they started walking towards the door.

"Faster, please. We need to get Gaara out of the way!"

Neji looked back at the window before he slid the door shut. He took Hoshiko's hand. "C'mon, I'll take you guys to the Hyuga villa. It's a bit far, but it's clear of any danger from the village."

Gaara saw Hoshiko's face. She was being friends with Neji and Gaara had to bite his lip. Why was it always him that ended up being all alone? Besides, he didn't quite understand his "need" for her. She was one person. He'd vowed that nobody would be special in his village. That no one person would take pressidence over the rest of the village. It was his vow as Kazekage. He had to bite pretty hard because Hoshiko's hand was still shaking as she guided him.

"Right, lead the way, Neji-kun."

Gaara stopped. Were they going to be married? Or was that his imagination just now?

"Kazekage-sama, let's hurry! Please!" Hoshiko was still holding his elbow. "Please, I don't want you to get hurt!" There was pure, thick, worry in her voice as she tried to get him moving. "Please, sir."

Gaara looked down at her. Up close, he could see the white shards in her eye that he'd damaged. He could see the partially blind eye and the perfectly pristine eye. It was beautiful. He had to shake his head and look away. Up close, all the past battle scars showed. It was on her arms, her neck, her face, her hands. Gaara was part of those scars, having put them on her.

Neji knelt down and held his arms out. "Gaara, let me help you. I'll carry you. It'll be faster." Gaara slowly let go of Hoshiko and into Neji's arms. "I still hate this idea, but we have to go. There's someone in your hospital room."

The trio took off, leaving Star to fend off the followers. Hoshiko stayed close behind the two men, but she didn't come closer. She kept looking back. After about fifty feet out, she sped up and touched Gaara's elbow. When he looked at her she smiled slightly.

"You're going to be okay, Kazekage-sama. Neji and I will take care of you, I promise." She reached out more and took hold of his elbow, pulling herself up to speed, so she was matching Neji step-to-step. "Neji, where do we turn?" she called over the sound of rushing wind. Her hair was flying every-which-way it chose.

"Turn!" Neji kicked off the trunk of a tree and shot out, into a clearing. The momentum actually landed him on the roof. Hoshiko didn't have that much momentum and landed on the balcony one floor down. She looked up at them and waved them to her. "Coming." Neji jumped down and put Gaara down. The Kazekage was breathing a bit heavy. "His wound's open!"

Hoshiko touched Gaara's leg. "It looks like it opened. Neji, find me a sheet or something to wrap his leg. I'm going to try to get the poison out."

"How?"

"By mouth. It's easy for me because I'm immune to all poisons that have ever been used." She started to unwrap Gaara's wound. Gaara leaned back and tried not to scream out. Hoshiko slowly went down and started to drink the blood and poison out of the wound. Becuase Sakura hadn't figured out how to get the deepest poison, Hoshiko believed she could make the wound hurt less by taking the poison out the old-fashioned way. When she pulled back, she put pressure onto the wound, spitting the poison onto the soiled bandages. Gaara's body began to quake slightly. "Hold steady. I know it hurts, Gaara." She was using a gentle voice as she started to drink more of the poison. This time, she shouted over her shoulder. "Neji! Hurry!"

Gaara's eyes saw dark spots. Hoshiko seemed to see something was wrong.

"GAARA!" She reached a hand up and touched his face. Gaara felt the world spin. "Gaara, don't fall asleep! Not now! Please!" Her voice quivered. "Gaara...."

He felt something hard under him and just fell onto it. It hurt, but he felt better lying down with his eyes closed.


	7. Chapter 6: Kiss?

Hinata arrived at the family's villa with some medicine. She'd heard this was where she'd find Gaara. Hinata used her Byakugan and saw Neji sitting at the front door, waiting patiently. Hinata started to wonder if it was just her imagination, but Neji looked a bit antsy while he waited.

Walking in, Neji got up to help her with the medicine and first aide supplies. The villa was eerily quiet for housing someone who was probably going to be on his deathbed soon. Neji and Hinata went to the back room, where Gaara was laid out and sleeping.

Hoshiko looked up at them and then continued using her style of medical care. Gaara was still damp from her use of water to locate and extract the poison that had gone through his weak system. Hoshiko gently dabbed the water from his face and neck. Neiji and Hinata put the medicine in order so she could read the labels and do what she needed.

Hinata had never seen such a healing method, using basic ninja fighting tools to flush a wound and take the muscles. She'd never seen such a use of a kunai when it came to stitching a wound. But Hoshiko's method was working wonders on Gaara's body.

When Hoshiko had it nice and tightly closed, she leaned down and bit off the extra string. Tying it again so it wouldn't slip, she started looking through the medicines, letting Gaara remain between her and them. After a moment or two, she took two bottles and started to grind some of the pills made into a fine powder. As she started to mix it into a small amount of water, Gaara moved. Without so much as a glance, Hoshiko put a free hand on Gaara's eyes and he was still once more. When the paste was a consistency she liked, she took a bit and put it over the stitches.

"Where did you learn all of this?"

"I've learned it from several medical ninjas. They told me to find a medicine that works with me. I can't maneuver around a certain kind of medicine." Hoshiko smoothed down the past so it was level with the skin. "I've found that you can't just have a jutsu or skill or characteristic without first finding what revolves around your own, original skills. Hence the reason my way is much different than the uniform ninja's medical way. On the up-and-up, you find what works and what doesn't through trial and error, so, I've had a lot of mishaps. But I've gotten better."

Hinata suddenly wondered if Gaara was okay in Hoshiko's hands.

"No worries, though. I've done this to Gaara before. I know what medicines work well with him." Hoshiko got up, groaning slightly. "While the Kazekage rests, I need to stretch and train. I don't take a day off. It's not in my skill set to take a day off. I'm from the Sunagakure's 'root' class Anbu. I'm not allowed to rest. It's not something I usually do." She reached to the ceiling. "If he wakes up, come and get me. I'll need to give him some vaccination pills he was supposed to take."

Hinata watched her leave and was amazed at the strength of the woman. She was strong internally and externally. Her body was nimble and thin. Her mind had been sharpened and honed. She was a force to be reconed with and Hinata envied all Hoshiko was.

"She's amazing," Hinata said out loud.

"Yes, she is." Neji smiled at Hinata. "Don't worry. She's not running away."

"You think I could ever be that strong?"

Neji's smile became more sincere. "Hinata-sama, one thing I know for sure, you're already getting stronger."

---Hoshiko---

She was practicing her hand-to-hand combat when there was a comotion in the villa. Stopping to listen, Hoshiko heard Gaara's yells and a few things breaking. She completely stopped and ran inside.

Throwing the door open, Hoshiko found Gaara and Neji fighting. Hinata was lying in a crumpled heap of cloth, door, and limbs on the far end of the hall. Neji was distracted between Gaara and Hinata.

"Go!" Hoshiko grabbed Gaara's arm and threw him out the open door. His foot caught on the edge of the door and he spun slightly. Landing facing her in a crouching position, on all fours. Hoshiko drew her sword. She really didn't want to use her own jutsu, not on someone inhabiting Gaara's body. "Who's in there, hm?"

"So, you've noticed?"

"The Kazekage is a gentle spirit. He has no reason to attack and knock unconscious a woman who is both unarmed and unprepared." Hoshiko held her blade before her and started to do some hand symbols with the other. When she made a fist, she charged. "Ninja Art: Blade of Wind." She started to slice at Gaara's body. When her blade barely missed, a wind swept passed and sliced Gaara's side. Hoshiko felt a twang in her heart. This was Gaara. The man she was so desperate to be with. She didn't want to kill him. But this match was starting to head that way.

"Ninja Art: Giant Sand Burrial!" The inhabitant used Gaara's own jutsu.

Hoshiko, quick as lightning, sheathed her sword and formed hand symbols. When she completed them, she slammed her hands down, calling upon a jutsu Neji had never heard of. "Ninja Art: System Fail!"

The sand fell all around the two ninjas and Hoshiko slashed through it, cutting at Gaara's face and neck. It was the easiest way to scare them into submission. It worked, because he retreated when she feigned a kill shot. She wrapped one arm around Gaara's waist and held him up. Sheathing her sword, she began to move when Neji joined her. The two of them took Gaara's body back to the villa's porch area.

As she laid Gaara down, he started to groan. Coming to reside over him, Hoshiko removed her mask and let it drop beside his head. "Kazekage-sama, come back. Don't let the wounds overtake you."

Gaara let out a resonating yell of pain. Hoshiko had to hold down his shoulders when he tried to move. "Let me go!" His eyes were wild with anger. He reached up and tried to grab Hoshiko's neck. She just kept his hands down. She pinned down his arms with kunais and used a huge throwing star to hold down his waist. "I said to let me go!"

Sand shot out from the huge piles and Hoshiko just let them harmlessly miss her. "Kazekage-sama, you have to understand, this isn't easy for me to take." She started to get water. "I need you to calm down and just understand this."

"Understand what?! You've tried to kill me again!"

Hoshiko grabbed Gaara's nose and poured a golden colored liquid into his mouth. "Swallow or you'll drown." He swallowed. "Good, now, hold still."

"It hurts like--"

"I know, just hold still." When Hoshiko's hands touched Gaara's exposed flesh, she felt him flinch slightly, but that was all. Slowly, Hoshiko let her hands sweep across his wound, leaving a trace of green residue as her medical skills began to seal the wound. "It's a temporary hold. Can you wait?"

Gaara nodded. When Hoshiko was pulling kunais out, she heard Neji calling her from where he was trying to keep Hinata alive. Pulling out the throwing star, she ran to see what Neji was worried about. Kneeling down, she saw Hinata was bleeding profusely from her shoulder and upper left arm.

"Neji, get the medicine with the label for antibiotics. Hinata needs to be stabilized. Hurry." While Neji did that, Hoshiko straightened Hinata's body so it was a perfect line and started to fell the wound. She found it to be a piece of glass that was jammed down her shoulder and arm. Hoshiko started to take the glass and feel the flesh around it, so she could see what was there. She found it didn't hit any vital organs and no major arteries. When Neji handed her the two vials with antibiotics, she took one of them, read the label and switched it for the other one. "Neji-kun, you need to stay with Hinata for a while." Hoshiko handed over two pills to Neji. "Chew those, but don't swallow."

Neji obeyed. When Hoshiko was satisfied with how long he'd chewed, she grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him down. His lips met Hinata's and he flushed.

"Slowly pass it to her. She can only take liquids. Enjoy yourself, if you want, but we can't get it in any other way." Hoshiko took hold of the glass and slowly began to move it outward. She had done this a million times on injured people with kunais and throwing stars. It was harder when there wasn't a place to put your thumb and pull out in a precise motion.

After a moment or two, she got it out. She let Neji bandage her up and crawled back to Gaara, who had pulled himself onto the porch so his feet weren't dangling off the end. "Kazekage-sama?" she asked, touching his arm.

Gaara looked at her and then gave a kind of sad smile. "I'm still here. But the wound might've opened."

"Don't worry, I'll take care of it." Hoshiko stripped away his shirt and steel mesh netting. She felt her face flame when she saw his exposed chest. He was a magnificent man, in more ways than one, and Hoshiko was sure that Gaara would be very much loved by any woman who saw him this way. She was just lucky to spend this much time with him. She placed her hands on either side of the wound and slowly pushed down. The skin didn't tear and she knew it was going to heal easy. Clasping her hands together in a concentration symbol, they flared the classic gray she'd always used. Putting them back down, she felt Gaara flinch slightly. Did he not like her touching him? She didn't care, she just focused on the muscles.

After five minutes, she heard Hinata move and was able to pull back from Gaara. He opened his eyes and slowly reached across to touch his wound. Hoshiko sat back and tried not to show her fatigue. Just when she thought she was okay, several trees that were only five-hundred yards out came crashing down. Someone was coming, and they didn't sound friendly.


	8. Chapter 7: Mimicry

Neji felt the earth move several feet up and down. When it finally subsided, he saw Hoshiko was holding Gaara pretty high up. Hoshiko jumped down, landing just a few feet from where the explosions had gone off. Gaara tried to stop her, but another explosion rocked the ground and Gaara was distracted with Neji and Hinata's well-being and left Hoshiko to her bidding.

When they were all safe, Gaara looked over the edge of his sand shelf and saw Hoshiko had locked in combat with a female shinobi with flaming red hair. Hoshiko was no match for the girl and was using her guards and fists to fight the shinobi. After a few moments, Gaara recognized her.

"That's Karin."

Karin struck Hoshiko with a kunai. When that failed, all Hoshiko did was punch her right in the collar bone. When Karin was far enough away, Hoshiko's hands formed signs and made symbols at a pace that was almost inhuman. Her hands ended in her style of the earth seal, a clap. She swung her body and landed a good kick to Karin's neck. With that momentum, she twisted down and Karin was slammed down right over her.

"Ninja Art: Sand Stone Fists." She started to pound the ground around Karin and herself. The dirt became dark and then huge craters formed. Karin and her both plummeted down the ten-foot hole. "Ninja Art: Blade of Soul!"

Gaara suddenly veered back, pulling the sand up and back as he went. Hinata's body was still badly injured, so Neji held her close. "What's going on?!"

Gaara didn't look back to explain, he was trying to get as far back as he thought was safe. Once they reached the main entrance to the villa, he turned to them. "Blade of Soul can only hit moving targets. It senses even the smallest things. Such as breathing or even blinking and kills."

"That's a handy jutsu to have in your arsenal."

"No it's not." Gaara looked back at the villa, as if to see through it. "It damages the nerve endings of the hands when used longer than a minute."

"A time constraint?"

They all turned around to see Jugo. He didn't say anything else, he just walked right around the corner of the villa.

Neji, turning on his Byakugan, was suddenly overwhelmed by the sight of several thousand wolves the size of house cats running around the villa. Past the pack of wolves, a blade of pure chakra was slicing through the air. It wasn't gray, like the wolves, it was a dark, almost black shade of green. And it petrified Neji to watch it use it's condensed chakra move.

"Stop!" Gaara grabbed his arm. "If you look too long, she'll notice. She can still use her own, unique jutsu that she created to take care of anyone else. We just have to hope that doesn't happen."

Sadly, it did happen. Kisame went whizzing passed.

Hoshiko's senses were heightened to the point that she felt Kisame's presence before she saw his presence in the distance. As she stood up from her original target, she launched herself over the villa's roof and met Kisame half-way. The blade she was using was dyed a dark green and wasn't pulsing with her chakra. It was only that of metal that hit Kisame's blade.

"So, you're the infamous sand root, huh?"

"You must be the infamous swordsman of the mist gone Akatsuki on everyone."

"Legend perceeds the real thing. You're much stronger in person."

With one hand, she performed a jutsu. "Ninja Art: Insufferable Eyes." Her eyes changed and morphed on her mask and became deamon eyes, wide and black with nothing but green shards of color.

"What will that do to me?!" Kisame whipped his sword around and slashed right at her, just barely missing her. "What?! No chakra?!"

"Not here." She held out her hand and Neji saw one of the wolves disapear. "In order for me to perform the art of Blade of Soul, I need my chakra spread out in a confined space. Now that I have the Insufferable Eyes, I can fight you with ease."

"Oh, is that so? I hear that you can only be killed by sand."

Gaara looked down at her. He didn't understand. She could only be killed by sand? He'd never seen her even get a scratch. Come to think of it, Gaara had never actually seen her fight. She always used long-ranged, distance attacks. She never came to close-combat because Star usually took care of that. Then it dawned on Gaara, she used other people's abilities, never her own. The Insufferable Eyes she'd learned from the Uchiha clan in the two months they cared for her. The Blade of Soul was an art she'd learned from a small village in the Land of Rain. She'd learned the Sand Arts from the villagers of Sunagakure.

What was her specialty?

"Sand is the only thing that gets me, true. Doesn't mean I'm immortal or have a form of immortality. I am who I am. They had to keep me away from Sunagakure after my first encounter with Shukaku. When I came back a second time, I was attacked, brutally, and decided I wasn't strong enough to be called the 'Root of Sand' because of my second encounter with Shukaku. My third time was a welcome to the fourth Kazekage. He was happy to have a good ninja back in the ranks."

Kisame smiled. "Shall we fight to prove who's strongest?"

"I told you, you're stronger. But if you must insist." With hands faster than most ninjas, she performed the hand symbols and used a water seal. "My own creation for you. Water Style: Giga Tsunami!"

Water gushed from under her feet. Her body shot up, on a geyser, and she performed more hand symbols. Again, it was a water seal. "Water Style: Water Wolf Pack!" She threw her right hand out and five water-made wolves that made a perfect circle around the geyser. "Water Style: Giant Sand Stone!"

Kisame was startled and looked up at her. "Giant Sand Stone?! What the devil--?"

The geyser turned to ice and had put Hoshiko in place. The wolves, however, had turned to mud and were starting to circle the geyser.

"The Giant Sand Stone is a code name for the way my geyser and wolves work. Thanks to the limited chakra I've got left, I can't actually use it to it's fullest extent. Sorry, Kisame, you're going to win this hands-down." She gave a little laugh before she looked at the wolves. "Go on!"

They lunged at Kisame and tackled him down, pinning him to the roof. "Get yer filthy mutts offa me!"

"Sorry, but I need an escape plan." Hoshiko launched herself off the ice geyser, breaking the ice off her legs and landed beside Gaara. "We need to get away from here, Kazekage-sama. Let's go."

Gaara agreed and started to move back. He kept an eye on Kisame's wriggling body beneath the giant wolves. When they were clear of the villa, Gaara set down and Hoshiko quickly tended to Hinata's covered wounds. Gaara reached out and touched Hoshiko. It was then that he felt the shake that covered her body. She was afraid of something. Gaara quickly squeezed her shoulder. "Let's go."

Hoshiko nodded and quickly finished her check of Hinata. "She'll be okay, Neji-kun." She gently touched Neji's hand. "Neji-kun, she'll be alright, don't worry."

"You're coming back, right?" Neji asked, his face portraying the answer he was looking for.

"I hope not." Hoshiko's voice portrayed a smile. "Take care of Hinata-chan, okay?"

Neji grabbed Hoshiko's arm. When she looked back, he lifted her mask up and gave a kiss to her forehead. "Have a safe trip."

"I will." Hoshiko put the mask back down and held out her hand to Gaara. "Let's go, Kazekage-sama. I'm sure Star, Monarch, and Blue are probably on their way back. I sent them a message, hopefully they got it." When Gaara didn't take her hand, she reached down and gently lifted his elbow. "C'mon. We have to catch up to them, at least."

Neji saw Gaara's look of loss. Gaara looked like he'd lost someone precious.


	9. Chapter 8: Warm

---_flashback_---

"Take her! I'm begging you! Take her!"

The thunder sounded and the rain echoed. It was a horrible sound. Everything sounded worse. It was like black clouds were raining pain and misery on his head. He could hear the commotion of the dirty women walking around, desperate for a good time with anybody.

He wanted to kill them all. Slice them to pieces for turning his home up-side-down. But he refrained from that because of the two-year-old baby girl in his arms and the nearly six-year-old boy at his side as he walked. He had to get them out of the village and into some other villages to be safe. He was going to turn them into true ninjas. This was not going to be their home, not while he was in charge of them.

"Dad?"

"Yes?" he responded, pushing through the crowds, holding the boy's hand.

"Where are you taking me?"

He stopped, his red eyes stinging slightly. "You're going to find a better life than this. You and your sister. Is that okay, Kabuto?"

"But I want to go with her!"

"You will, some day, just not today. There's a man outside the gates, I want you to stay with him and his family. It's a big village. You'll make some friends, eventually." He touched Kabuto on the head and smiled. "Some day soon, Hoshiko will find you. She's always found you and I. She'll find you some time in the future. Just pray for it."

Suddenly, an explosion went off and people by the gates screamed and chaos ensued. He lost Kabuto in the flood of oncoming people. He held to the girl in his arms. His head protector glinted in the light of the next flash of lightning. He held fast to the girl when a man stumbled passed with a skinned arm and burned skin. This was no place for children and he felt his heart knotting. Was it going to be like this for his blood daughter? Or worse?

Kabuto was his step-son. He wasn't related, not to Hoshiko's father, but he was still a son. Kabuto had a mother and father out there somewhere, probably looking for him. But she had left Kabuto on his step-father's doorstep with his one-week-old sister in the pouring rain.

With a deep breath, he turned away and dashed for the forest. He was being followed. The faster he ran the worse it got. The more he hoped he could hold her longer, spend time understanding her. Watching her grow into a fine young woman. But he couldn't. His baby was going to be a ninja in some unknown land that he assumed would train her well. No chances of yelling at her for doing something wrong. No chances of watching her walk for the first time. He was going to miss out for her safety. Ah, that pain was never going to fade.

He broke into the clearing. It was sand everywhere beyond the stones. He was almost there!

The ninjas were still behind him. He touched his head protector around his neck. It was time to leave the Rain behind and become something else. His daughter was leaving behind the Rain and trading it for the Sand. He took off his Rosary and strung it around her neck. After a few moments of saying his goodbyes while she could see him, he scooped her up and made the last dash for the sand.

He could see ninjas coming across the sand plains and this was where Hoshiko would be found. He'd lay her here and let her be found by the approaching ninjas. Forming a dome over her so she would be protected from the sun, he waited. She was still awake and she reached up to him. His heart broke. She was his baby. Leaning down, he kissed her forehead and tears fell as he withdrew and she just giggled. For the first time, she smiled. His heat didn't sink at first, but it floated away, to a happier place. The war was ending, the Nations were settling, but there was the aftermath of war that would ravage her life.

"Hoshiko, my star girl. Heh, I hope you survive. No, I pray to see you again, my star girl. I want to see you again, live that long, okay? Live long enough to kill us both. Be the one to kill your brother and I." He touched her cheek and dashed off.

Just about twenty feet away, he heard an explosion, like a paper bomb barrage went off. The Sand and Rain ninja were fighting and it was deathly close to Hoshiko. When they began to push the Rain back, the cries of the baby made him run away. She was alive.

---_end_---

Hidan sat up so fast he felt sweat fly off his face. Looking down, his hands shook. This wasn't happening.

It couldn't be happening.

Kabuto had told him that Hoshiko's name had vanished in the records for Sunagakure. Why was he dreaming of that day?

"No! Get back!"

Hidan looked up and his eyes widened. Gaara was dangling from a sand claw just a bit away from Hidan. He was almost unconscious, but he saw Hidan and pulled himself back up.

"Hey! Hoshiko! Wolfe! Hurry, please! If you fight much longer, you're going to die like this!"

"Just keep moving! There should be a caravan ahead somewhere! It's coming from the Rain! Go!"

That voice. It sounded like it could've been a female Hidan. It was strange, but Hidan scooted back so he was near Kakuzu. They were hidden behind some trees. Hidan watched as a girl with gray hair and a broken mask was slammed into the tree near them. Her hair came lose and she stood up, quickly maneuvering away. A black rosary came out from under her arm protector and the circle and triangle became clear.

She brought her hand up and then back. A long scathe-like weapon appeared and she swung it around and down. It sliced open one of the pursuing ninja's arms. The scythe was black and silver with two blades and a broken-off chain. She turned away and stopped.

Hidan was standing up. His eyes were wide and he desperately hoped it was true, that it was her. "Are you....?

"I know you." She was quiet, but something said she was scared to ask. Courage seemed to grip her and she lifted off her mask. "Are you.... my...."

"Hoshiko?" Hidan asked, his throat clogged. "You're alive?"

"Kabuto said.... five years ago, Kabuto told me.... you were.... gone."

It was like a rock wall hit him while he was running. Five years ago, Kabuto was unstable and unsure of himself. Hidan had seen it. Kabuto had lost his will to be anything but insanely correct about everything. He had then been asked, by Hidan, to look for Hoshiko. Had it been before then?

"Hidan, do you know this girl?" Kakuzu asked.

"Know her?" Hidan looked back at Kakuzu. "I helped make her. I helped raise her for a time."

---Gaara---

He finally collapsed. He couldn't run anymore. His leg was killing him. Tangling his fingers in his red hair, Gaara tried to hold onto his sanity and not scream for another blast to knock him down for good. He'd had enough with running. He was done.

"Gaara!"

He was shocked. Hardly had he heard Hoshiko call his name and just his name. Looking up, across the river, he saw Hoshiko. She was stumbling, like something was wrong. Behind her came two sinister figures Gaara thought he'd never see again.

Hidan and Kakuzu were walking idly behind her. At first, they looked like they'd kill, but then, it dawned on Gaara, that Hoshiko had Hidan's weapon. Perhaps she'd tamed them down a bit. Gaara couldn't get up, so he waited. When she came to the river's edge, it dawned on Gaara that Hoshiko couldn't swim. She'd never like water and Gaara saw her predicament. She waded in anyways and then dove in. At first, she didn't come up, but then Gaara noticed the water was acting strange. The closer she got, the easier it was to tell.

She had dug Hidan's weapon into the stones and was slowly crawling towards the other end.

But Gaara saw something else as well; sand. Sand was coming out of Hoshiko's lips. She was dying, but she still managed to get across and to Gaara's side.

"Hoshiko, stop pushing yourself. It's okay!" Gaara got up and Hoshiko smiled and fell into his arms. She coughed and blood came out. "Hoshiko!"

"Gaara, can I ask you something?"

Gaara sank back onto the smooth, make-shift, stone seat. "I'm listening."

"Don't laugh." She reached up and touched his cheek. Her hands were cold from the water, but affection and warmth spread from the feeling. "Can you hold me for a little bit? Please, Gaara?"

He didn't say anything, he just moved his other arm and pulled her closer. "Yes." Her body curled up against his chest and Gaara felt human, for the first time. It was so odd, how she could easily make him wait and how she always made him realize just how human he'd always been.

"Thank you," she whispered and closed her eyes.


	10. Chapter 9: Confessions

---Suna---

Gaara was pacing back and forth as the medic nin left the surgery light on. He was impossibly frightened.

When he'd gotten a hold of his old self, Gaara realized that Hidan and Kakuzu were standing on the river bank closest to them. Hidan held out his hand and touched Hoshiko's cheek. He proceeded to explain that Hoshiko and he were father and daughter. Kakuzu and Gaara remained silent as he had explained himself. He had told Gaara that she needed them to physically remove the sand.

And that had landed Gaara in the hall just outside the surgery area. He was ignoring his other duties for this. He was going to hear an earful from Temari and Kankuro. Gaara gritted his teeth and kept an eye on the light above the door. This was something he had to do. Gaara wanted to be there when she woke to tell her the things he wanted to just blurt out. Gaara turned for the umpteenth time and stopped.

Temari stood there, tapping her foot impatiently. She was obviously infuriated by Gaara's not showing up for work at the usual "crack-of-dawn" time. She was storming up to Gaara, and it was then that he wished Hoshiko were beside him, to be his support.

"You have a lot of explaining to do, Gaara! You haven't shown up for the day's work, you went missing from Konohagakure's villas, you haven't shown up for work for nearly ten hours! What are you thinking?!"

"Wait, Temari, please, I can explain this if you let me." Gaara heard the light click off and looked around. The surgeon came out and looked at Gaara. He moved back and the medic nin moved passed, covering Hoshiko in blankets. She was sleeping and Gaara thought she was beautiful like that, finally at peace. "Sir?"

The surgeon smiled. "She's fine. She won't be able to go back to fighting at top strength for a while. Her lungs are flushing out the sand we missed. She'll be okay soon."

Gaara nodded and watched them wheel her around the corner. "Where is she going now?"

"To an elevated room. The higher up she is, the faster she heals, it seems. She's been here before, for another, severe injury that I had to treat. Thankful, I was able to save her eye last time and her lungs this time. She's quite accident prone, isn't she?"

Gaara smiled softly. "Yeah, she is." He reached out and grabbed Temari's wrist. "I'll tell you while we head up to her room."

---Hoshiko---

Slowly, the blackness was turning gray and then it flushed to white. She had trouble adjusting her eye, but she found it easy to focus. And then she realized someone was muttering just by her left elbow. Turning her head just a bit, Hoshiko's eyes fell on Gaara.

He had his elbows propped on his knees and the knuckles of his clasped hands digging into his forehead. He looked so strange like that, so human.

Slowly, Hoshiko reached out and touch his hand. "Gaara?"

He shot up and grabbed her hand. "Hoshiko, don't say anything! I have to say something kind of important and I want you to just listen."

Hoshiko nodded and held his hand, gently.

"You know how, when you were training me, I would always annoy you and make you upset with me? Well, I used to think you were annoying. Now, of course, I'm wondering just how sane I am for doing that to you."

"Gaara, you were still a good fighter."

"I guess. But that's not the point!" Gaara looked determined to say this. "I always watched you and wished for something to arise that would suggest you were a person I could believe in. I did a lot of things to figure it out. I even went so far as to find the strength to say this."

She didn't say anything. She saw his hands shake and knew it was a bad time to ask him if he loved her. Gaara was not the kind of person Hoshiko pictured admitting his feelings.

"I found my reason to fight, my reason for becoming so strong. I want to protect the things that are the most precious to me. I want to thrive off the world's abundance of truth and love. I found a person I want to spend forever with, if that's how long we live." Gaara looked at Hoshiko's hand and then smiled. A warmth that was like a flame erupted and seemed to spread from where they touched. "I want to make it as both your lover and your protector. Is that okay, Hoshiko? Can I do that for you?"

"I don't know. Gaara, you belong to the village. What could I possibly hope to give the man who leads our village?"

Gaara's green eyes glistened with the tears he was holding back. "I don't know anymore. You've given so much and gotten so little. Let me return something! Anything. Just understand that I feel like I can fly when you laugh. I don't know how cheesy that sounds, but it's true."

"It's a bit of a cliche to say that." Hoshiko smiled. "That's just how you are, Gaara. You don't know everything. It's okay. I don't know everything."

Temari broke into the conversation then. "You two are quite the odd-men-out. Look, just open your eyes and see it. Gaara chose you because he wanted to be near you. Hoshiko chose a path to become stronger to keep you safe. It's like you guys are doing the same thing from both sides." Temari smiled.

"I don't want to take Gaara away from his family!" Hoshiko said, sitting up. That motion made her head spin, but she curled up all the same. "I know you guys were the first to accept him, so, I won't take that from him."

"Hey! Gaara wants you for you! You were also the first person to think that of Gaara." Temari sat on Hoshiko's bed. She leaned over and kissed the top of Hoshiko's head. "You, not once, said that you hated Gaara. You've always been so good to him and to us. Kankuro and I were waiting for someone like you."

Kankuro laughed. "Yeah. Someone who said that love was never good, never understood that something about real life, I suppose." He pushed off the wall and came to stand at the foot of Hoshiko's bed. "You, despite not seeing it, helped Gaara get back on his feet after Shukaku was taken away. You got him going again."

She burried her head into her knees. "Nobody told me or showed me the difference between love and pain. They always showed me love is cruel, that love always hurts." Hoshiko started crying. "I was left by my father in the middle of a battlefield because love of war made my life a living death pit. My brother hasn't talked to me in several years. What makes love so good?"

Gaara sighed and touched Hoshiko's shoulder. "I'm sorry, it's your turn."

She looked up and Gaara punched her pretty good on the cheek. Temari and Kankuro were shocked and quickly got up to grab Gaara, but Hoshiko's little giggle made them stop. "You're right." She looked heart-broken, but happy. "I'm being silly, aren't I?"

Gaara put his knuckles on her head and gently grinned. "You don't know how many times I've seen you upset. Smile once in a while. It's good to laugh. Love hurts if you make it hurt. You taught me to trust and love the friends you have and don't miss out. Perhaps I should teach you how to live again." He smiled.

Kankuro and Temari relaxed as Gaara sat on Hoshiko's bed. Temari spoke up first. "Gaara, should we tell her now?"

"Oh! I almost forgot, there's a couple of people who've been waiting to see you." Gaara got up and went to the window. Since it was open, he just leaned out and looked up. "She's awake, if you want to see her."

Hidan and Kabuto appeared beside the bed. Kabuto sighed in relief and collapsed onto Hoshiko's bed. Flinging his arms around her, he sighed. "You're good. I'm sorry that I hadn't met dad before I talked to you. If I had, maybe it would be easier." He patted her on the head.

Hidan didn't say anything, he just smiled and patted her knee.

"They just came to say 'hi' while you were awake." Gaara sat on the chair again.

---_three months later_---

Gaara was running down the halls. He had to get there, and quickly. When he broke through the lines of people, he found the roof. Hoshiko was perched on a rail and was looking at the setting sun, as if she waited for the big bangs.

Her long, silvery-gray hair was tied up nice and she wore a kimono. Her sandals were neatly placed beside her little bag. Perched on the rail with her was a plate of dango and two cups of hot tea. She also had a fan tucked into the back of her kimono. She turned around and then smiled at Gaara. "Come join me! They're about to begin!"

Gaara and Hoshiko forgot about the threat of the world, but she was now able to understand better what Gaara was like. The threat of war didn't touch them this night as the fireworks of Sunagakure went up, illuminating the sky.


	11. Chapter 10: Blood

---Sasuke---

He felt a pain twang dangerously close to his eyes. He was going to have to find a way to successfully fix his eye. Somehow, Sasuke had found that his eyes stung when he didn't use is Sharingan on a normal basis.

Sasuke had also, recently, found out that if he used Yakushi Hoshiko's blood, he could become just as immortal as she was, just as able as her.

He had a plan, now.

---Hoshiko---

She hadn't gone back to her normal duties. It had turned out that she couldn't do anything for a few more weeks. The sand was still in her lungs, and she had to keep her activities down. So, to make up for it, Hoshiko's new duties were to keep Gaara's paperwork going.

She was currently stacking Gaara's new papers together. It was the documents that were for the next five Kage's meeting. Gaara needed to go through them before the end of the week. He'd gone through the normal reports and had completed his own agenda for the meeting already. Hoshiko didn't mind helping him fix up any flaws, but she was kind of nervous about his siblings lingering around her and judging her every move.

Now that Gaara was at lunch, she was fixing up his desk. Tapping papers into a neat, nice pile and putting them in the same-height piles. She sighed and looked out the window. To her horror, she saw three, little, black-clad figures appear on the wall of the village. She recognized them by their shapes. Sasuke, Karin, Jugo. Three. Where was the fourth?

Either way, she ran out the door and down the hall. Hoshiko hated interrupting Gaara's time alone, but she needed his answer, and quickly. "Gaara!"

He shot out of his seat. Her fearful face must've shocked him. "Hoshiko, what's wrong? The doctor told you not to run!" He rushed to her as she tried to catch her breath. "Hold on, let me get you some oxygen." Gaara was reaching for the window when Hoshiko's yell came back.

"Sasuke! He's here! He's in the village! Gaara, he's probably here to get something! I don't think he's here to make nice." She slumped against the wall where she sat. "I'm sorry, I should've said something, but, you have the authority to do something."

Gaara nodded. He was sure he could do this. Turning to the door, he marched passed Hoshiko. "Star! Noose! Come here quickly!" He turned back and knelt beside Hoshiko. "Look at me. I won't let anything happen to you. You're my duty. I want to protect you. Can you stay with me?"

Hoshiko grabbed his arm and held fast. "Yes. I'll stay here, right by your side."

Star and Noose appeared. The two of them stood at attention. "Sir!"

Gaara didn't get up, nor did he look away from Hoshiko. He was getting her up, off the floor. "Get the guards. We need to secure the city. It would seem Sasuke's going to attack our village for something. I don't want you to pull your punches. Send him off with blood in his wake. Make sure that the defenceless people are sent to the epicenter of root for protection." Gaara finally looked at them, his arms firmly holding Hoshiko's weight. "Don't let the Genin fight. If the Chunin must be used to fight, use them, but otherwise, keep them out of harms way."

"Sir!" They both vanished.

Gaara looked back at Hoshiko. "I'm going to stay with you, I promise." He lead her to the bench where guests sat when they came to eat with Gaara. He turned her around she she faced the window. He didn't want her to see his fear of losing her. He closed his eyes and prayed that Shukaku would give him strength to fight, should the need arise. As much as Shukaku had ruined his life, Gaara still believed in Shukaku's strength. He believed that strength to move forward, to meet Naruto's strength, that he held onto, it was from his belief in what Shukaku could do. Gaara didn't believe he had his own strength to thrive on.

"Gaara?" Hoshiko's small voice broke through Gaara's thoughts.

He looked down and saw she was adjusting herself so she was closer to him. "Yes?"

"It's a nice day outside."

---three hours later---

Gaara was breathing hard. The sweat rolled down his face and drenched his back. This was impossible. This was harder than he'd thought! Sasuke had gotten stronger than when the two had sparred last.

Lying in a crumpled heap, Sasuke started to get up again. Hoshiko, hiding behind a wall of sand, watched Gaara stand up again. He was refusing to use his sand. Physically, he was battered, but chakra still overflowed from within his body. He was very much ready to strike.

Gaara, seeing Sasuke's focus wasn't on him anymore, quickly formed the hand symbols. The huge Kazekage tower behind him dissolved and began to flood around Gaara and Hoshiko and swept over Sasuke's Chidori. Gaara placed his feet shoulder-width apart and put his hands, palms down, and the sand around him began to move. Gaara was going to have to use an unknown tech that he'd have to come up with on the fly. Sasuke knew most of Gaara's moves.

Sasuke kept going. His focus was on the sand wall that was Hoshiko's hiding place. Gaara closed his eyes and let the sand guide him.

With a quick snap, Gaara brought his left hand straight up, holding over his head and made a fist of his right. He moved and the fist opened. The raised hand came down and swept low, Gaara following and crouching down. He was airborne because of the sweep. When he came down, his feet slammed hard into the sand and huge spikes the size of human bodies grew like wildfire from where Hoshiko crouched straight towards Sasuke. Sasuke dodged. Gaara turned to his left and the sand kicked up as he turned and made a slashing motion.

Sasuke went hurrling into the wall of a nearby tower.

Gaara used the surprise and opened his eyes. He brought his right hand around to point the fist at Sasuke. All of a sudden the sand rose up like little beads. Slowly, they hovered closer to Gaara and when Sasuke stood up, Gaara opened his hand. The sand beads became sand projectiles and continued their barrage of Sasuke's body. Gaara thought of Naruto while he continued to think of another way to get Sasuke to leave.

"Gaara!!"

That scream made him lose focus and he saw Karin and Jugo had captured Hoshiko. She was struggling against their grip, but because of the sand in her lungs, she was uselessly struggling. She was already choking.

"No!"

"I need her blood, Gaara. I'm sorry to say, that's everything I need right now! Give her to me freely, right this moment!"

Gaara was mortified as Sasuke gave the signal and Karin produced several syringes. The first needle made Hoshiko scream. It was in her neck. The next went into her arms. Gaara went to stop them when Sasuke intercepted. "Why?!"

"I can't tell you. Too bad for you, I'm your problem right now."

"GAARA!"


	12. Chapter 11: Choices

Temari heard the screaming and turned around. As she turned to face the screamer, her heart stopped dead. Hoshiko was being held by a rather large man and a young woman was sucking the blood from her body. Temari had to hold her breath before she charged.

Gaara was helpless, so Temari would help to the best of her abilities. She swung her fan and the blunt action of that sent the woman careening off. She used the momentum to dig the end of her fan into the ground and whip around. She slammed her foot into the large man's jaw, sending him reeling back. Hoshiko fell to her knees and tried to pull the needles out of her arms. She was crying from the pain and Temari couldn't help but want to defend her. This girl was special to Temari's brother, and that was all she cared about right now.

"Ninja Art: Wind Scythe Jutsu!"

The man was thrown to the side after a while and Temari knelt down. Hoshiko's wounds weren't healing and she was trying to stop the blood. Temari decided to use sand to clog the open wounds, as that was something Hoshiko had done once before. It stopped the blood from flowing freely and Hoshiko collapsed into Temari's arms.

"Temari, it aches."

"Hush, I know." Temari looked around. "Gaara! She's okay! Go ahead! She's safe."

Gaara had looked up and smiled. Clasping his hands together, he made the Earth Seal. Hoshiko had taught him the technique of summoning Shukaku, after all that he'd been able to do. Summoning up the tailed-beasts was easy for someone who had the right chakra, but Gaara just wanted Shukaku's strength to make the huge Sand Tsunami to get Sasuke down. After that, he'd use his sand for the purpose he originally used it for.

As the Sand Tsunami came crashing down, Gaara smiled. Twisting his left foot, the sand rose up and, with the motion of his hands, came raining down in spikes. Gaara waited to see if Sasuke would go down. No such luck. Sasuke slashed through the sand and straight for Gaara. When the blade sliced Gaara's cheek and shed his blood, Gaara had to retreat. His Sand Shield had failed, catastrophically.

Gaara was about to attack again, when a gust of wind brushed his hair. By reaction, Gaara ducked down, but was shocked to hear Baki.

"Eat this!" A tornado sprang up and consumed Sasuke, slicing away at his robes. Temari, from beside Gaara performed her Hurricane Jutsu, to add to that. "Gaara, retreat! We've got this."

"Baki, Temari." Gaara smiled and ran back to Hoshiko. He stopped a few feet away.

---Kabuto---

He heard a loud crack and turned around. The picture frame set on his table was cracked. The picture from ages ago, when he'd been no more than six or seven, was now cracked. Right over Hoshiko and Hidan's faces. Kabuto stood with soap and water dripping off his hands.

"Hoshiko...."

He turned and looked at the closed windows. Reaching out, he pushed one shutter open and saw the clear skies. Hoshiko would always have a good day when it wasn't raining or noisey outside. He let the breeze rush passed him. Oh, how wonderful.

"You'll be okay, won't you?"

---Hidan---

He stopped mid-step. Something was tugging at his heart. He put his foot down and looked back. Had he felt that twang of pain just now? Had it been real? What was this feeling, pulling so hard at his heart-strings?

It dawned on him, maybe it was Hoshiko.

He touched his chest, right over his heart. "C'mon, my star girl, don't be like that." He smiled. "Don't."

---Kankuro---

He was breathing heavy, but he'd managed to bind up the woman and two men that had come with Sasuke. He'd had to use his puppets to hold them still. With a deep breath, he made his way to the huge tornadoes that were ripping up all of the training grounds in Sunagakure.

When he was about half-way there, he heard someone talking, but only to themselves. Kankuro stopped and listened. Had he heard the voice before?

"Hoshiko?"

She was gently holding her neck. The sand she'd used was maroon from blood and she seemed delirious. She was more human than Kankuro had ever seen her before. She was frantic, scared even, as she tried to stop the blood. Kankuro couldn't move to help her out of pure shock, but when she started talking about getting back in the fight, Kankuro's mind zoomed back to reality and to just how dedicated Anbu were to missions.

Not that he'd seen it before, Kankuro had always heard that Anbu would do anything to complete the mission, including working around injuries. Maybe that had been true, but he'd never know. It was impossible to know, unless he'd go through that.

"Kankuro-nii!"

He was never going to get used to that. "Kazekage-sama?" He turned to Gaara and waited for his brother to say something.

"Hurry! They need you! Please!" He had obviously seen Hoshiko sooner, because he wasn't really bothered by her current state of disaster. "Temari-nee and Baki can't hold off Sasuke!"

Kankuro gritted his teeth. They were going to have to destroy the village at this rate! "Fine." He took out his last puppet that he could use, Karasu. "Time to make a break for it, then. We're not destroying this home of ours."


	13. Chapter 12: Electric

---Neji---

He was finished with training for today and was sitting beside Lee. The two of them were sweating from attacking each other with no strings attached. Neji had never really gotten over the fact that he'd met his "betrothed wife from another village" that Hizashi had set up. She was intelligent and beautiful. Deadly beautiful. But something had been wrong, like she was missing one great thing to make her likable.

Now that he had nothing else to think about, it dawned on him.

Hoshiko never really showed herself. She made a silly barricade between her and everyone else. It was like she was demanding everyone to see that. That thing made her unattractive and probably very unlikable.

Neji started picking at the grass. But that wasn't what made her unlikable. It was something more, something that he couldn't think of. Was it her personality? Her attitude on life? Her fighting style? Wait....

He sat up straight, his eyes wide, and his chin up. Her fighting style! It was a copy of everything she'd learned! She had no style all her own. It made her seem invincible, but to learn that many techniques meant she was vulnerable to attacks. None of them could be that strong, could they? After all, she was only imitating them. It made her seem unlikable because then she was too strong to be human and would probably scare the man away. Was that what made her very unlikable?

"Neji!"

Lee had grabbed his attention and the two looked up. A brown bird was zooming overhead at a break-neck speed. It had the blue ribbon of the Sunagakure Anbu Ops.

"An urgent message?" Neji got up. Something was wrong.

---Gaara---

He turned and pushed the sand again. This time, Sasuke was buried, but Gaara wasn't going to crush him, not just yet. He waited and felt Sasuke's electricity shocking the sand at all angles. Gaara gritted his teeth, regretting his chance.

His chakra was running low, so, Gaara switched to close-quarter's combat. He'd have to use everything he'd ever learned from Shadow, Wolfe, and from his own training. Gaara put one foot back and turned it so it faced away. He put one hand out in front of him and the other just in front of him. Shadow had told him that it was best to have a back-up plan if the first hit doesn't connect. Wolfe had taught him to keep his feet firmly planted.

Now wasn't the time to hesitate.

Sasuke burst from the sand, lightning streaking out behind him. As he came back down, Gaara made his sand shield over his entire body. Sand wouldn't conduct electricity and it wouldn't transfer it, all the sand would do is deflect it. Sasuke's foot hit Gaara's shoulder. The impact made Gaara falter just a bit.

But Gaara came back strong. He twisted, grabbing Sasuke's ankle and throwing him off. Again, he was in that stance, odd as it may have seemed. Gaara raised his right hand that was closest to his body and put it over his head. His left hand was still before him, a lose fist that could be maneuvered at any time. He felt like a cheap imitation, after he'd seen Wolfe's unique Taijutsu, but it was useful.

When Sasuke tried to use his blade, Gaara just leaned forward slightly. Sasuke electrically charged his blade and Gaara didn't falter. When Sasuke was about a foot away, Gaara lifted his left hand so it faced Sasuke. He opened his hand and the blade was stopped on his palm. Slowly, Gaara turned. His right fist never moved from over his head as his left hand let the blade go and slammed into Sasuke's jaw. When Sasuke came back, Gaara brought his right hand forward and down, opening it. Sand darts shot out and hit Sasuke's electrically charged body.

Gaara was running out of ideas and his chakra was starting to fall, and fast. A drop of sweat fell off the end of his nose and Gaara knew he was almost at the end of his rope. The sound of cracking told him his shield was falling off. Focusing, he tapped into the sealed chakra.

Touching his chest, he felt the dent. Hoshiko had, a long time ago, given Gaara a rosary she'd had for years. It had chakra charged in every bead. If the pendant was torn away, the beads would dissolve into just enough chakra to do three large jutsus. That was all Gaara needed. If he just tapped into a portion of it, he wouldn't be too bad off.

Putting his hands at his sides, Gaara closed his eyes. Shadow's technique would have to come first. If Gaara could sense Sasuke's movements by the surroundings he was tuned into, then Gaara could counter Sasuke. Wolfe, Hoshiko had said that it works well with Gaara's inhuman tuning to sand.

He felt Sasuke's foot-fall three feet away and sensed that he was aiming for a high kick. Gaara ducked and swept low, knocking Sasuke away. But the hit cost him. Part of his shin went numb. Sasuke was still electrically charged and the shield had already fall away there. It was a little late, but Gaara wondered if death truly was peaceful at this rate. He had to protect his village and it's people from any invaders, his Anbu included.

So, now the question stood, how long would Gaara, the Kazekage, last against Sasuke, Orochimaru's pawn? Gaara thought he couldn't last long, not without help.

---Temari---

She had finally left the gates of the village. There was no more sand moving. She had to find Gaara. He was probably in trouble. Thankfully, she was fast with the wind on her side. She zoomed faster than the Anbu and landed a few feet from Sasuke.

The Uchiha was kneeling over a body, his blade raised. He stood up and was bringing the blade down when Temari saw that familiar maroon coat.

"GAARA!"

She swung her fan and blew Sasuke away from him. Temari ran to Gaara's side and saw how weak he was. His sand was trying to cover him, but he was unconsious. Blood came from his lips and moved off his chin and down his cheek. Blood came from his left ear as well. The dangerous wound was that on Gaara's side. He couldn't breath with that open wound.

Temari was just about to give up when a hand came down and began to heal Gaara's wounds. Temari looked up and shock filled her face. "You...."


	14. Chapter 13: End

Gaara lay perfectly still, but his body ached. He opened his eyes. The last thing he'd seen was darkness over-taking him.

Now, Gaara saw Temari and Kankuro's face. They were leaning over him and the ache was gone. Was it the ache of the heart? Gaara didn't know.

"Where am I?"

"On the battlefield." Temari helped Gaara sit up. "You can't fight anymore, you're low on chakra."

Gaara touched his side where he was sure Sasuke had gotten him. Instead of a hole, he felt his bare skin. It was gone. Touching his ear, Gaara heard his hand coming. He swallowed without pain and realized the three, critical hits were no more. Had he been under a Genjutsu?

"What happened?"

"Several things, sir." It was Star. He was kneeling beside Temari and Kankuro. "Sir, give her authorization to kill."

His eyes snapped open wide. "What?" Gaara was looking at Star now. Gaara didn't like anyone to kill. But he was assuming Star was referring to Temari. He didn't want her to kill anyone, not even if it was for his sake.

"Give Yakushi Hoshiko 'Wolfe' permission to kill Sasuke. She's currently holding him off so he won't come to kill you."

"She's alive?!" Gaara was frantic now. If she was alive, then what had he seen?

It was clear in his memory. Hoshiko's motionless body was leaned up against a slab of stone that had been part of the Kazekage Tower. She was in a pool of so much blood that her body wasn't bleeding anymore. Gaara had felt for a pulse and found none. He'd knelt by her side for a long time before he decided she was dead. Had he been mistaken?

"Yes, by a miracle, sir." Star touched his mask. "Something saved her when nobody was looking. We're not sure what, but we did find this." He held up the exact same rosary Hoshiko always wore under her cloths. Black beads and a pendant. The pendant was a circle and a triangle. "We think it's something to do with the cult-like religion Hidan of the Akatsuki is from."

Gaara closed his eyes. That same rosary was around his neck, holding his ties to Hoshiko quite firm. "I give my permission to force him into a retreat. Nothing more."

Star bowed his head and Gaara watched him leave.

In the distance, Hoshiko was pushed away from Sasuke by his lightning, but she was still standing. She lifted her head and closed her eyes again. It was getting harder and harder to breath, but her father had managed to get all the sand out of her lungs. Hoshiko had to use her own techniques now, though. Sasuke could easily dodge any other technique that he'd seen, except her's.

She needed time to focus. She couldn't just kill him, she didn't have the authority to authorize her own killing. It had to be concentrated into a singular or she'd end up locked up for life.

"Wolfe! You have permission! But not to kill! Just to push him back!"

Her eyes snapped open. Then a wild tech like her's would be perfect. She gave a little shout to say she'd heard so Star could retreat and she faced Sasuke again. "You're going down this time, Sasuke."

She started to form hand symbols and Sasuke tried to stop them. She avoided him and kept going, doing the symbols on the run. Sasuke kept up with her, trying to stop her. When she completed the symbols, her hands formed the Seal of Fire. Her head protector shredded away, save for the metal, and her shoes were torn away as well, shredded and disposed of. Surprisingly, her cloths stayed, but her gloves vanished.

Her scars faded away and her eyes became a firey red with green rims.

"What in the world?!" Sasuke asked. "No matter. I'll cut you down just as easily as I did Gaara."

Hoshiko stood with her right hand over her head and her left hand in a lose fist before her. Her right foot was on it's toes and her left foot, being to forefoot, was flat. "We shall seen, Uchiha Sasuke, we shall see."

When the blade touched her left hand's knuckles, the blade began to turn red. Sasuke gasped and pulled back.

"Your body! Is it on fire?"

"No." Hoshiko remained in her stance. She'd taught it to Gaara, but not the reason why. It wasn't a reason for regular Taijutsu. It was meant for when Hoshiko actually used her real ability, her unique ability. All her cloths had been made fire-proof for this reason alone. "I can charge my body's heat. Over time it builds and when I release it all, my body's skin becomes hotter than fire and becomes quite tanned."

Sasuke noticed it now. Her skin wasn't so pale. It was starting to turn copper-tinged.

"But my body also reverts back to a normal body. It's not as frail. But it's a double-edged sword. My outside is tough as nails, but my internal body is slowly freezing. The longer I use this technique the more my body dies." Hoshiko's eyes were bored, but it was obvious she was trying to keep herself from charging. "So, will you come to get what you came for?"

"Yes." Sasuke raised his blade. "I can't use this more than just this once. This will decide the fight, won't it?"

"Yes, it will." Hoshiko put her right heel down and lowered her body to the ground. She brought her right fist down and forward. That momentum caused a huge blast of heat to emanate from her body and knock Sasuke back a step. "I won't let you take this village from me, nor this life. There's still something I need to do before then."

Sasuke's blade ripped with lightning and Hoshiko's body sparked embers that bounced off the sand. The two ran and clashed. The explosive energy sent sand flying in all directions. Sparks as large as baseballs went flying into the air and thunder rained from the clear skies.

"You know, you're nothing like Kabuto?" Sasuke said.

"Nobody can challenge a brother who stepped from his older brother's shadow." Hoshiko smiled and the two fell away, into their own darkness.

It was over.


	15. Chapter 14: Unloveable

--Hidan---

He felt a weight in his heart lift and he was finally able to breathe, it seemed. Looking up, Hidan let a breeze pass right before him. It was a wonderful feeling, being able to breathe again. He had feared something had happened to his children and he would have to deal with it the rest of his life.

But which one had died? Which one was he going to have to visit at their graves? Was it the strong and nimble Kabuto? Or the swift and intelligent Hoshiko?

Either way, it felt awkward to have them at such a time when ninjas raged wars against each other.

---Kabuto---

As he crouched in the rain, hanging over a grave, Kabuto felt an ease to his pain.

"Hey, dad." He smiled and put the white carnations on the unmarked grave that lay amongst the millions. "Hoshiko's doing just fine. We don't have to worry. How's the afterlife?" Kabuto touched the eye patch he wore. "Is it better than all this war and turmoil? It must be, because you won't have to worry about death and me."

He sat down and touched the grave.

"Death must be nice. But I can't die until it's over."

---Hoshiko---

That's an odd sound. Like pebbles being thrown at a metal roof. But there was no way Sunagakure had metal roofs, they'd wear down really fast. Was there a metal plate outside that kids were throwing stones at? No, it was directly overhead.

She tried to figure it out as it got louder. Was it rain? No, if she were in Sunagakure, the rain would sound more like it was hitting sand, like a soft group of "thunk" and "thump" sounds. This was like a rattling sound. Was it wind, maybe? No, it was constant.

A knock.

"Come in." That was an unfamiliar voice and movement made Hoshiko wonder if this was a place for healing or a place for torment.

"Is she alive?"

"Yeah. We're working on her right now. We may have to amputate."

"How bad was the lightning wound?"

"Severe. She may never see again. Perhaps she could, but not much."

"And her organs?"

"They're still trying to function normally. We've got everything but her liver working."

Hoshiko was trying to figure out what they were talking about. Was she damaged beyond repair?

"How long will you keep her?"

"As long as our medicine can help her."

"Will you release her when she's better?"

"Her wounds will take time. We're just trying to get her awake first."

"How long until we know about the amputation?"

"Tonight."

Hoshiko heard silence and tried to move her fingers. Her left hand moved just a bit. Her right hand didn't move. She twitched her toes and felt them move. When she lifted her left arm, she heard the two people gasp. She touched her shoulder and then her neck. The bandages under her fingertips were moist. She touched her face and realized her eyes were open. She was blind. Lowering her hand to her side, she felt something tug at her stomach. Wires wove a net around Hoshiko's arms, head, and torso.

"You're awake!"

She had to focus to know who that was. "Temari?"

"Yes?" she sounded unsure. "Nurse, get a medic! Quickly."

The sounds flooded in then. The mechanical clink of machines pushing fluids into her body. The soft drip of the IV going. The little bubbling sound of a heater. The loud rapping and thunderous booms from outside. The breathing of Temari's. Then she heard someone move in the corner.

Scents flooded her nose. The person in the corner smelled like rocks. Temari had the faint scent of lavender. The copper smell of blood twinged the air. The chemical smell of a clean hospital.

"Sir!" Temari said.

The person in the corner was still again, just breathing.

"She's awake."

Opening her mouth, Hoshiko couldn't seem to form the words to speak.

"Don't try that. You're never going to talk in this state." The medic was touching her neck. He put his hands on her stomach and began to move them towards her sides. "You've got a lucky streak. In your body, you've fought off a lot of disease without a vaccine. In a way, you survived because of your luck. That lightning could've killed you. Somehow, it was concentrated on your right arm only. I would call that luck."

Hoshiko didn't say anything. She took a deep breath and listened closely to the person in the corner. Stones, earth, they smelled like the ground. But they were quiet. They must be sitting in a chair, or when they'd moved she would've heard a foot fall. Using Anbu training, she thought of that rather than her injuries.

When the medic asked to talk to Temari outside, Hoshiko finally wiped the tears from her eyes. That was the end of her ninja days. The person got up and came to stand beside her bed. Hoshiko reached up. They were on her left side, maybe she'd know who's hand touched her's.

"Gaara?"

"Yeah." He sat on the edge of her bed. "You didn't really have to do that." He let her hand rest on his knee. "I don't think your life is that useless."

"I just wanted something. It's been a while since I wanted something for me." She was surprised she could speak.

"I'm giving you chakra."

"What?"

"Your body heals with chakra. I've got a bunch stored up."

She gave a very sad smile and closed her eyes. "I guess I should just wish and not want."

"What did you fight so hard for? Maybe I can help."

"A smile."

---Temari---

"It has to go?"

The medic looked upset. "Her whole right arm and most of her right leg have got to go. The damage is worse than we'd thought. She may have a chance to die. We won't know until it's over. At this point, she can go both ways."

The door opened behind the medic and Gaara stepped out. He stopped when he realized the two of them were staring at him. The shock faded away and he looked away. Sorrow echoed on his face as he left the door open. The rain outside kept pouring. Hoshiko was standing in the middle of the room. She was looking down. She looked like a woman who belonged in a sanatorium. When she looked up, they realized something. She was upset as well.

"Gaara!" She ran after her brother.

He was standing at the end of the hall with his head against the window. His arms hung limp, but Gaara acknowledged Temari's call.

"Gaara, what happened?"

He shook his head. Closing his eyes against the rain on the other side of the glass.

"Why are you so sad?"

"You know something?" Gaara said, his eyes still closed. "I never wanted to give my family up to anybody. I swore that no one person would be more important than my village and family. Hoshiko knew that." He opened his eyes half-way. "She risked her life to save me. She wanted me to be happy with my brother and sister. Never mind loving someone else. She loved me from back when we were Anbu partners." He looked at Temari and tears filled his eyes. "But I want to break my promise to my village."

Temari immediately understood. Gaara and Hoshiko had made the silent agreement to put the village first. There was no way to make it right. Not when they wouldn't. "You're going to give her away to Neji, aren't you?"

He just nodded and put his forehead against the glass again. "It's over. Kankuro and you and I will be all I'll have right now." He closed his eyes and sank to the floor. "That's all I'll hold onto."


	16. Chapter 15: Family

He was lying in the grass, waiting. He put his arms out and watched the blue sky. It was sad. He'd hoped not to see her again.

"Neji?"

He quickly sat up. "Don't worry, I haven't gone anywhere."

Hoshiko was using a new invention of the medic ninjas'. It was a wheelchair and she was confined to the paved or cobbled places. At the moment, she was at the bottom of a hill, waiting for Neji to come down.

Now that she was blind, her eyes were a very light purple. They were almost white. One of her ears couldn't hear anymore and she had no right arm. Her right leg was replaced by a construction of the leg of a willing donor. She was currently wrapped in a dark brown blanket. Neji took care of her, as was his nature with his soon-to-be-wife.

He jumped down and touched her hand. "Ready?"

"I hate this." She smiled. She hated showing up for rehab.

"I'll stick around this time. I don't have a mission until after the wedding tomorrow." He leaned forward and kissed her forehead. His heart still belonged to Hinata, for all her gentle nature, but he had to pretend like this was his whole world. "I'll be right here, I promise."

He was hoping his wedding-day present would be perfect for her. He'd convinced Gaara to come and see her. Today was Hoshiko's chance to walk. There was the chance she'd fall. Neji had asked Gaara to be there to catch her if she fell. He wanted her to have something before Neji would be her only one.

When he arrived, Gaara was standing in the shade. He was wearing a maroon jacket with matching pants. He was barefoot in the grass. When he saw Hoshiko and Neji, his dark expression brightened up and he smiled. He waved quietly and Neji nodded.

"You ready?"

"I think so." She reached over her shoulder and touched Neji's hand.

Neji saw them coming and looked behind him. He was surprised to see Kabuto and Hidan come to a halt nearby. They looked sad, but smiled when Neji looked at them. When they tossed their weapons beside Gaara's blade and gourd, he realized they were here for Hoshiko as well. Was this her family?

"What should we do first?" The medic didn't seem fazed. She just smiled and Hoshiko shrugged. "Okay, well, let's get you out of the chair first. I'll walk with you for a bit. Ready?"

Kabuto and Hidan came to stand on either side of Neji. "What're you doing here?"

Kabuto gave a little laugh. "We're here for her." A soft tap told Neji Gaara came to stand nearby. "I can't support my sister from far off."

"She's my little star girl, always." Hidan smiled. "You'd be surprised what she's got. Her body's actually healing her wounds, but at a slower rate than normal."

"What does that mean?" Neji asked.

"Well...." Kabuto looked thoughtful. "She used to be able to heal at an exponential rate. That was how she used to be." He put his hand on his hip. "Somehow, she's gotten better at healing faster than humans. But right now, she's healing at a speed that's just a bit faster than humans."

"You make her sound inhuman."

"Dad?" Hoshiko had stopped and was holding onto the medic nin. "Kabuto-nii?"

Kabuto smiled and ran over. "Hey!" He gave her a little hug. "It's nice to see you're still going."

At first, Hidan didn't move, he just smiled and ran a hand through his hair. Slowly, he walked towards her. "You're so stubborn, just like me. No wonder you're so weak." He put a hand on her head and gave a laugh. "You should cut your hair."

Gaara and Neji stood side-by-side now. Gaara held out his hand. "Thank you."

Neji looked confused. "For what? All I've done is given her a wedding."

Gaara gave Neji a sad smile and Neji just shook his hand. "You gave her more than a wedding."

"No!"

Gaara reacted and Neji looked.

Hoshiko had tripped. She had closed her eyes. Gaara's arms came up, around her and the two of them went down. Gaara looked like he'd bruised his back somewhere. He finally sat up and his arms loosened around her body.

"You.... you're...." Tears filled Hoshiko's eyes and Neji felt warmth spread to the tips of his fingers, making it tingle just a bit. "Gaara...."

"Yeah, it's me." Gaara touched her head. "You okay?"

"I fell...." She punched Gaara before the tears poured. "Of course I'm not okay." She hiccuped.

Neji tried not to laugh as Gaara flapped his arms. It was unusual to see him do something so human as freak out. "Here." Neji knelt down to wipe her tears when Gaara elbowed his way in.

"I'm sorry!" He used his sleeve and wiped it away.

Hoshiko just kept crying, but she was smiling now. Happiness was just enough to make her cry. "G-Gaara.... Neji-kun." She sniffed and opened her eyes.

Kneeling down, Hidan and Kabuto picked her up. Hidan brushed away another tear. "Hoshiko?"

When she opened her eyes, they all gasped. Her eyes weren't a light lavender, they were royal purple. She blinked and then crouched down, covering her eyes. Gaara and Kabuto came down to her.

"Are you okay?!"

"Does anything hurt?!"

They looked at each other and then Hoshiko spoke up.

"Owie...." She was rubbing her eyes. "Why does it have to be so bright?!"

Gaara quickly made a shade over them with some sand from his gourd. Kabuto took out something liquid and dropped it in her eyes.

She rubbed her eyes again and opened them. Neji had never seen that kind of purple eyes. They were so magnificent. They weren't like Hidan's blood-red or Kabuto's chocolate-brown. They were filled with unknown. She looked up at Neji and then smiled like nothing was wrong. She lunged at him and hugged him.

"Thank you! Thankyouthankyouthankyou!"

"What did I do?" Neji asked.

Hoshiko didn't say anything, she just looked at Gaara, Kabuto, and Hidan. "You gave me a way to get better." She smiled. The scars on her face were receding under her hair. Something was growing out of the sleeve. Her body was consuming the leg she had.

Neji withdrew. "You--what in the world?!"

Hidan shrugged. "Told you so. She took my trait of healing and her mother's ability to reproduce dead cells."

She looked down and then up. "Don't freak out!" She moved her hands to close Neji's opening mouth. "Remember when we fought? When we spared for the fun of it?" He nodded. "Isn't it curious how I don't feel pain? How I didn't reel from your blows?" Again, a nod. "That, Neji, is a mixture of the blood in my body. I can't feel pain, not even your Gentle Fist. I can feel something, though, that punctures my body." She let go.

Neji's jaw stayed slacked. "You mean you're 'invincible' in a way?"

"No." Hoshiko sighed and raised her hand. With one sweep, she whacked Neji and turned her back on him.

"What the--?!" He gritted his teeth and looked away. "Whatever."

"I'm not invincible. I can only use my healing ability if I've got chakra. It's a downfall."

"I figured something out." Neji turned back around, dropping his hands. Hoshiko turned half-way to him. "You're techniques. The one's that you've learned are weaker, aren't they? If that's the case, why use them in the first place?"

"To confuse people." She closed her eyes. "I can use a variation of Gentle Fist or the Thousand Birds, but it's not the same."

"Is there anything that's normal about you?" Neji asked. "You know, like, a favorite color or an old boyfriend?"

Hoshiko smiled. "Yes, there is." She opened her eyes. "There's a lot about me that's normal."


	17. Epilouge: Finally There

---Naruto---

He rolled over and right off the grass and onto the pavement. He lay on his back and watched the clouds. Had he really imagined that power coming off her? She'd been strong....

"Naruto?"

He hopped onto his feet and smiled. "Gaara...."

Gaara looked away. "Is this really a good idea?"

"Yeah. She's strong, intelligent, and defiantly a good catch. Besides, Tsunade requested you come to see the fireworks for this festival."

"Why?"

"Because it's been three years since we forged a bond as a allies. She wants to celebrate it since you guys came here." Naruto slapped his hand on Gaara's shoulder. "Besides, Ino and Hinata went to help Hoshiko get ready for tonight."

"Okay...." Gaara sighed and then shook his head. "So why'd you call me out here?"

"So Neji, Shika, and I can help you. Besides, we're just here to cheer you up. Kankuro's got the wardrobe for you." Without warning, Naruto picked Gaara up and threw him up the slope. "We're going to do some training! Get your kiddy gloves off!"

---five hours later---

Gaara tied the last string and looked at Kankuro.

A maroon over-coat and a dark brown yutaka made up majority of Gaara's cloths. He wore white socks and was going to put on a pair of slippers later. He had washed his hair, so it was freshly dried and his face still shimmered with moisture.

Kankuro was standing in his black yutaka. He didn't want to wear an over-coat. He wore black socks and was going to wear black slippers.

"Ready?"

"No." Gaara moved to the door.

When they were outside, Gaara slipped his hands inside his yutaka and let them rest inside. He wasn't ready for his "blind date" of sorts with Hoshiko. He hadn't really seen Hoshiko wear much more than a gray jacket, brown pants, and black shoes. She never wore anything fancy, but he would have to see.

They both heard a crowd of giggling girls and around the corner came Sakura.

"C'mon! It's not that bad." Sakura was wearing a red and pink kimono and a pink hairpin that resembled sakuras. She spotted Gaara and smiled.

Next came Ino. She wore a dark blue kimono with a purple wrap around her waist. Her hair was tied up in a bun with a ponytail coming down. She wore a pair of blue earrings.

Hinata and Tenten came next. Tenten was wearing a Chinese gi that was a beautiful rose pink. She wore white pants and undershirt to accent her white hair ties. Hinata wore a light blue kimono that matched her handbag and the clip holding her hair back.

The last two came out, pulling a girl with them.

She had short gray hair that was just above the shoulders. It was held away from her face by a beautiful, lavender clip with the inscription of "These are the days" printed in black. She wore a violet kimono with silver stitching that made it looked like she was wearing the sky. She wore a white sash around her waist.

It was Hoshiko. All the girls had helped put make-up on her. She was much different than Gaara remembered and he was sure his face was now the same color as his hair.

"Gaara! Kankuro! Hey!" Sakura ran over and grabbed Gaara's arm. "C'mon, we've got dates except Hoshiko! Hoshi-chan!"

She waved her arms and then hid her face with her hands. "No, no, no!"

"Oh, yes, yes, yes!" Sakura and Ino chorused.

Neji gently tapped Gaara's elbow and passed by. "Hinata-sama."

"N-Neji-nii." She smiled. She obviously didn't like the fact that she looked nice.

"Ready?"

"Yes." She reached out and grabbed Neji's arm.

Hoshiko finally looked up and Gaara stared into her eyes.

Kankuro summoned the others away from his brother. They watched in awe as Gaara finally spoke.

"R-ready to go, then?"

Hoshiko gave a little smile. "Um, yes. You look handsome." She kept her right hand just under her chin and the other was behind her. When she gave a bright smile, Gaara's face really did turn the same color as his hair.

"Th-thank you. You look.... so gorgeous." He gave a smile and Hoshiko's normally pale face turned pink.

Temari punched Kankuro. "Stop peeping! Come on." She pulled his arm. "We'll be late for the fireworks. Let them have their moment."

Kankuro sighed and he knew that both in his mind and in Temari's, Gaara's words echoed loud and clear.

'_I want to always see her smile. She's so nice to me. She deserves at least that much, doesn't she?_'

Without really thinking, they both said their answers then and now.

"Yeah, she does."


End file.
